The Bank of Korea has rised the 2022 inflation outlook from 4.5% to 5.2%
Aug 24, 2022
Asian stock markets followed Wall Street lower Wednesday as traders prepared for a possible sharp interest rate hike from the Federal Reserve to cool inflation.
Shanghai, Hong Kong and South Korea declined. Tokyo advanced. Oil prices were little changed, staying below $100 per barrel.
Wall Street tumbled Tuesday after Walmart warned inflation that has spiked to a four-decade high of 9.1% is hurting American consumer spending.
The Fed on Wednesday is expected to announce a rate hike of up to three-quarters of a percentage point, triple its usual margin. That would match a similar increase last month, the U.S. central bank’s biggest in 28 years.
Investors worry aggressive action against inflation by the Fed and central banks in Europe and Asia might derail global economic growth.
“The main risk at this stage is in fact an inflation ‘overkill’ with monetary tightening too abrupt, unnecessarily pushing up the unemployment rate,” said Thomas Costerg of Pictet Wealth Management in a report.
Thomas said most economic indicators and lower commodity prices already point to slower inflation ahead.
The Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.1% to 3,273.32 while Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 advanced 0.1% to 27,692.89. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong sank 1.5% to 20,598.58.
The Kospi in Seoul retreated 0.6% to 2,398.48 and Sydney’s S&P-ASX 200 shed 0.1% to 6,798.20.
New Zealand advanced while Southeast Asian markets declined.
On Wall Street, the benchmark S&P 500 index fell 1.2% to 3,921.05. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.7% to 31,761.54. The Nasdaq composite closed 1.9% lower at 11,562.57.
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